Stop The Press, Hold The News
by Mary Larabee
Summary: This new story is set in modern time. It is mainly about Mary and Chris, but the others show up as well…and that's all you need to know for now.:
1. Chapter 1

If you clicked on this story, that means that you like my writing and you want some more! Am I right? Well, I surely hope so! ;)

**This new story is set in modern time. It is mainly about Mary and Chris, but the others show up as well…and that's all you need to know for now. :)**

**I am just borrowing the Magnificent 7 characters, I don't own them.**

**Please, click the review button once you read chapter by chapter – I LOVE feedbacks! :)**

**Chapter 1**

Mary Travis took a deep breath as she left the elevator on the third  
floor. Slowly, she took in her surroundings. Like any other newspapers  
office, this wasn't much different. Familiar chaos was in the air as  
people ran past her, phones ringing, sound of typing on the computers  
and printing papers was heard.

This was her first day in "Colorado Post". It was a good thing she  
moved, Mary tried to convince herself as she started to walk further  
into the office, looking around.

Year ago, her husband was murdered. He ran the local newspapers "The  
Clarion News" and occasionally Mary wrote few articles. He tried to  
encourage her that she was able to become a serious journalist, but  
Mary just laughed it off. She barely had time to even sit and read the  
newest edition of the "The Clarion" because Billy asked her undivided  
attention.

Than all of a sudden, all the hell broke loose; Stephen was killed  
because he published the truth and Billy witnessed his Father's  
murder. The last year was a living hell; Mary was a single Mother plus  
Billy had constant nightmares. Her Father and Mother in law tried to  
help her by taking Billy away from the town where his Father was  
killed, but it only got worse because his beloved Mommy wasn't there.  
That was when Orrin suggested that she and Billy move away from Four  
Corners. It wasn't a safe place anymore and they all hoped that the  
boy will recover somewhere else, with his Mum by his side.

Mary knew she didn't have a choice. Besides, her son's peace and  
health and happiness were on the first place for the young widow.  
Therefore, she looked into job adds and found one in "Colorado Post".  
They were looking for a journalist and Mary sent them her CV.  
Receiving a reply within two weeks, offering her a position, Mary  
Travis packed her and Billy's stuff. Orrin and Evie had an apartment  
in Colorado. She still remembered Evie's tears as she hugged her and  
Billy, saying that they will be safe there.

And now, here she was. First day at her new job. Creasing her  
eyebrows, Mary looked at all the doors. Where will she find editor's  
office?

"May I help you, lovely lady?", she suddenly heard male's voice and  
turning around, she saw a moustached man smiling widely "If I may be  
of any service to you, please, don't hesitate to ask."

"Senor Buck!", a high angry female's voice was heard and Mary saw a  
young woman leaving an office, shooting arrows with her eyes at the  
man beside Mary.

"I was just offering my help, lovely Inez", Buck tried to explain  
himself, but Inez interrupted him "Cállate! And don't jump on every  
female human being that enters here!"

"Bit of jealous, aren't we, Inez?", a tall man winked at her "Don't  
worry, you are still my number one!", with that, he politely nodded at  
Mary and sprinted away. Inez watched him go and huffed "Idiota!",  
shaking her head, she looked at a young woman in front of her "Lo  
siento, senora. Senor Buck is...", shaking her head in disbelief, she  
was lost for words.

"An outrageous specimen of male human being, shortly; a pig?", a man  
who passed by suggested the words and Inez nodded.

"That would be the closest description. Thank you, senor Standish",  
she offered her hand to Mary and smiled "I'm Inez Recillos, secretary  
of 'Colorado Post'. How can I help you, senora...?", she raised her  
eyebrows in question.

Mary accepted young woman's hand and with small smile, she said "Mary  
Travis. I'm here for a job."

"Ah, yes, yes. A young journalist from The Clarion, Four Corners. Welcome."

"Thank you", Mary replied. She took an instant like of this woman.

"You have a sit, I will tell editor – in – chief that you arrived",  
she offered her a seat and opened the doors behind her desk. She was  
gone for a minute or two, than came back "You can come in."

Mary got off from her seat and went through the doors. Passing by Inez  
who started to leave office, Mary approached the desk that stood  
beside the window. A man was sitting behind it, writing something on  
the paper while talking on a phone "All right, I'll send JD right  
away, you stay there and try to get as much information as you can.  
Right. Okay. Bye", he hung up, than pressed the button on a phone  
"Inez, get JD here, tell him to bring his camera, Tanner is waiting  
for him", he glared at Mary "Coffee, Miss?"

"No, thank you."

"That will be all, Inez, thank you", hanging up, a blond haired man  
shook his head "Sorry about this", he stood up and offered his hand to  
her "I'm Chris Larabee, editor-in-chief of Colorado Post."

Mary accepted his hand "Mary Travis. Very nice to meet you, Mr. Larabee."


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Leaning back in his chair, Chris put some papers away and took Mary's  
CV that Inez brought him few minutes ago. He looked through it and  
Mary tried to study his facial expression. He was a hard man to read,  
she could say that right from the start. But, she saw a slight, barely  
visible raise of his right eyebrow in...wonder? Amazement? Mary wasn't  
sure, but she was certain that he liked what he saw.

He flipped the next page and slightly nodded his head before putting  
Mary's CV back on the table. He raised his glance and looked at the  
woman sitting in front of him.

"Well, Miss Travis, I see that you had quite lot of experience. Did  
some editorial for a while as well?"

"Yes, during the last year."

"Why did you leave?"

Mary swallowed. Stephen's death wasn't something she wanted to discuss  
with a stranger. Therefore, she collected all her strength and lied "I moved away, needed a job."

Chris looked at her skeptically, but didn't say a thing.

In that moment, doors hurled open and young man stormed in, carrying a  
camera "Chris! Inez said you needed me!"

Chris rolled his eyes. Some things will never change; there was no  
word 'knocking' in JD's dictionary.

He sent an excuse - me - look to Mary and quickly wrote down the address  
on the piece of paper. Handing it over to JD, he shortly said "Vin's  
waiting for you", as young man grabbed the paper and sprinted away,  
Chris shook his head. Not even 'Good morning'.

Inez closed the doors behind young photographer and Chris shook his head again, with a small smile. Looking back at Mary, he took a breath in.

«Well, Miss Travis, welcome to Colorado Post. Inez will give you your contract and after you study it, you can sign it, or discuss it with me if something isn't clear.»

«I assume that paycheck issue is covered in that contract, Mr. Larabee?», Mary raised one eyebrow and Chris felt his upper lip curl up a bit in a smile. This woman couldn't be easily confused and he liked that. It was a sign of a real journalist.

«Absolutely», standing up from his chair, he said «Now, let me show you your desk and introduce you to your new collegaues», he waited until she stood up from the chair and reached the doors where he opened them and said «After you.»

Mary left the office and was greeted by a warm smile from Inez. She softly smiled back and followed Chris through the big room. After few steps, Chris Larabee stopped in front of one of the desks and said «This will be your working place.»

Mary nodded and slowly put her purse down before raising her head as she heard Chris' words.

«Folks, we have new collegaue. Miss Mary Travis. She came from Four Corners, worked as a journalist and an editor in The Clarion News.»

«An editor?», Buck whispered into Nathan's ear «Looks to me like Chris got himself a competeition», causing Nathan to roll his eyes and shake his head.

«I hope you will help her settle and help her to adjust», he looked at his colleagues and nodding to Mary, he started to walk away…

…But not before he playfully hit Buck's head and commented «I heard you.»

Buck winced and rubbed his head at place where Chris kicked him before he went to introduce himself to his new collegaue.

One by one, people came to greet Mary and introduce themselves, as well as welcome her in Colorado Post. She greeted everyone of them with a soft smile and shake of her hand. Few minutes later, everybody went back to their own work and Mary took a breath in and sat down at her desk.

_This is it. This is the beginning of new life. Away from the ghosts and bad memories_, she thought. She turned the computer on and took out her mobile phone, dictaphone, paper and pen from her purse. Checking her mobile phone, she saw an sms from the neigbour that was watching over Billy. A lovely old lady in her 60's Nettie Wells, Evie's old friend.

_Dear Mary,_

_Billy is doing just fine. We had some lunch and are now watching cartoons with some popcorns. Good luck with your first day at job. Don't worry about a thing._

_Nettie Wells._

Swallowing, Mary softly smiled and after replying to her neighbour and thanking her, she placed the mobile phone back on her desk.

At the same moment when her mobile phone was set on a desk, a hand placed a cup of NES coffee right next to it. Looking up, Mary saw Inez.

«Thought to give you a proper welcome», Inez smiled.

«Thank you, I appreciate that», Mary replied, accepting a cup.

«She makes the best coffee in this newspaper, Ma'am», Buck's moustached smile popped up begind the wall as a tall man passed by, carrying some papers. Mary couldn't supress a smile at seeing a look at Inez's face.

«He just never stops», huffed Inez, trying to sound frustrated, but Mary noticed how Inez's cheeks got just a bit more red from Buck's compliment. Still, she decided to keep her opinion to herself. After all, they've just met. Therefore, she took a sip of coffe and smiled to Inez.

«Thank you very much, it is delicious coffee. Just what I needed.»

Inez smiled back and said «I have some work to do, but later on, we can grab a bite and get to know each other. So nice to have some women around here.»

«Yes, I noticed there aren't many of them», said Mary.

«Si, just senorita Casey and me», she nodded. «Well, why don't you check our website for a start while I go get your contract?»

«Will do», nodded Mary. As Inez left, she took another sip of her coffee and turned toward her computer.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

It was a good thing that Inez directed her to website of Colorado  
Post; this way Mary could see what kind of news are they publishing.  
She liked that they had long interviews, she hated short news in  
newspapers and on web portals. Always got lost in them.

Casey Wells was doing the culture pages. Mary was surprised when she  
read her interviews and texts. The girl was very young, but she had a  
sharpness about her writing. Definitely somebody that Mary would love  
to see in the action; it looked like there was no question that Casey  
wasn't able to ask.

Photos were nicely done, not to mention web design. The website was  
wonderful. Mary clicked on impressum to see who's doing it. JD Dunne  
was in charge for photos and Buck Wilmington was web/graphic designer.  
Printed version of Colorado Post was also perfectly done. It looked  
like two of them worked as a team, and obviously a good team.

Josiah Sanchez was in charge of high policy pages, and he definitely  
did his job. Beside him Mary saw the name of Vin Tanner, whom she  
still didn't meet and - of course, Chris Larabee. Nathan Jackson was in  
charge of sport pages, while Ezra Standish was writing about business  
and economy.

It all looked very organized. Mary wondered what will she be doing.

In that moment, doors opened and she heard Inez greeting two men.  
Looking up, Mary saw Chris Larabee leaving his office, patting JD on  
the shoulder as a young photographer passed by him on his way to his  
table and turned to talk to long haired man.

"What happened?", Chris asked.

Mary strained her ears as long - haired man started to talk. She heard  
him saying something about the man getting shot and her brain started  
to work. She remembered something similar happening last month in  
Purgatorio and decided to talk.

She stood up from her desk and in few fast steps, she was beside two men.

"Excuse me, gentlemen. I couldn't help but hear what were you talking  
about and I remembered something that happened last month in  
Purgatorio. The man was shot the same way like you said this one was.  
It looks like the same person is responsible, I recognized the way both people were shot.

I have some information about the killer from Purgatorio,  
perhaps you can use it...", it was than when Mary noticed that they  
stared silently at her, lost for words. She felt uncomfortable "I am sorry, I  
shouldn't interrupt."

Inez couldn't believe that she saw a hint of a smile on her boss'  
face; yes, indeed, Chris Larabee smiled a bit at Mary's outburst.

"Vin, this is our new journalist Mary Travis. She worked at 'The  
Clarion' in Four Corners as an editor and a journalist. Miss Travis,  
this is Vin Tanner, my deputy."

"Nice to meet you, Miss Travis. Looks like we didn't make a mistake  
when we chose your CV among others", Vin smiled "I would be grateful  
to you for any info you have about this case."

Mary nodded. "I'll look into my papers this evening and will bring  
them to you tomorrow morning, if that's okay."

"Sounds perfect", nodded Vin.

"I'll leave you to your job now, excuse me once again for interrupting  
you. It was nice to meet you, Mr. Tanner", she said and as both men  
nodded, Mary turned around and went back toward her table.

Vin caught the small smile on his friend's face and as they went  
toward their office, Vin commented "She looks like a smart woman", he  
glared at his friend and saw Chris only slightly nodding. But, Inez's  
smile told him that she also saw what he saw. Therefore, Vin smiled  
back at her before closing the doors of the office.

-*-

Mary unlocked the doors of her apartment and placed the bag with food  
down "Hello", she called.

In next second, a small older woman showed up from the living room  
"Hello, Mary, dear. How was your first day at job?"

"It was good, Nettie. Thank you. Your cousin works there, right?"

"Yes, Casey is writing for them app. two years. I was hoping that you  
two could have met before you go to job, but she was out from  
Colorado, came back last night."

"That's quite all right, she is very nice girl", taking her jacket  
off, Mary looked around "Billy's sleeping?"

"I just put him in the bed. He had his dinner and I read him a story.  
Didn't turn the light off just in case", said Nettie, her warm face  
clouded with worry.

Mary swallowed hard. "Thank you, Nettie. It means a lot to have you here."

"Don't mention it. I'll see you in the morning, Mary. Good night."

"Good night", Mary closed the doors behind her neighbour and taking of  
her shoes, she tiptoed into Billy's room.

Her little boy was sound asleep, and Mary slowly sat down on the bed,  
caressing Billy's soft blond hair. Her eyes filled up with tears as  
she prayed to God for her little angel to recover here, away from all those  
ghosts...

"Ma?", Billy's silent voice was heard.

"Hey, sweetie. Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you up", whispered Mary.  
Her little son crawled up from the bed and hugged her tightly "It's  
okay, darling. I'm here. You're safe", she held him close as once  
again he cried himself to a sleep.

-*-

Mary entered the office, black circles under her eyes. Billy had  
nightmares again and she barely had any sleep last night.

She greeted Inez and sat down at her desk. Turning on the  
computer, she took her dictaphone out and started to listen to it. In  
a moment, her tiredness was gone as she started to work on her story.

Inez slightly creased her eyebrows. It was already ten days since Mary  
Travis started to work in Colorado Post and she was always first in  
the morning at her job. She came even before Chris and Vin. However,  
Inez noticed that something was wrong, that something was on young  
woman's mind. Something serious.

She took the envelopes from the desk and a book of protocol. Lots of  
paperwork this morning.

She thought about talking Mary into quick cup of coffee and try to  
talk to her to see what's going on, but in that moment Chris Larabee showed up.

"Morning, Inez", he greeted her.

"Morning, senor Larabee."

"Any mail for me?"

"Just this", she handed him three envelopes.

"Thank you", Chris took the envelopes and started to walk toward his  
office. That was when his eyes caught the glimpse of Mary Travis  
already working hard on her story.

His brow slightly wrinkled. Mary was a good journalist, there was no  
doubt about that, he saw it in her work. But something wasn't all  
right with that young woman. In some ways she reminded him of himself  
five years ago when Sarah and Adam were killed...

Chris didn't like to think about that. It took him three and half  
years to find out that his ex - lover Ella Gaines was the responsible one  
for his wife's and son's death. She burned them alive and paid for  
that. Court sentenced her to many years of jail, but she committed  
suicide just few months after she was arrested. Crazy and sick, she  
cut in Chris' full name in her hand before cutting  
herself until till death.

It took Chris long time to even start to live normally. Without help  
of his friends, he wouldn't be able to do it. They all helped, especially Buck.

He was the first one who talked him into going out and even put on the clothes in  
different colour than black. Chris softly smiled as he remembered the  
horrible sweater Buck gave him for his birthday. It was the most  
ugliest thing Larabee ever saw; red sweater with some yellow and green  
stuff on it. Back than, Vin commented that it looks like somebody threw up  
on the sweater sending all of them into laughter. That was the first  
step toward Chris' healing. Luckily, he didn't have to ever put the  
horrible sweater on. But, Buck was proud of himself as it was the first thing that made Chris completely crack up from laughter after many time.

Lost in his thoughts, he didn't even notice that Mary got up from her  
chair and went toward Inez's desk. He snapped from his trance only  
when he heard her voice.

"Good morning, Mr. Larabee", she turned toward Inez's desk "Inez, I  
need to go on the corner of Fifth Street and Second Avenue. Can you  
please direct me where exactly is it?", she took out a map.

But, before Inez could even start to talk, Chris walked up toward them  
"I'll take you there, Miss Travis."

Surprised, Mary looked up at her boss "All right, thank you", she  
waited for him to take his car keys and they went outside the  
building.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

It was still very early and the parking place was practically empty. Mary checked her purse for dictaphone and mobile phone while she followed Chris toward his jeep.

He looked at her "Interview this early?"

"Yes, it was the only time Mr. Jackson could find in his busy schedule", replied Mary, rolling her eyes and Chris felt his upper lip curling up in a smile. Not noticing it, she continued "So, I went for it, didn't want to miss the chance."

"That's a proof of being a hard worker and I appreciate that."

"Thank you, Mr. Larabee", Mary said, bit surprised by his comment and than he did something she wasn't used to lately – opened doors of car for her. Such a simple gesture, but Mary was surprised. In a positive way.

While he went around the car to get to q driver's seat, Mary looked at him more closely for the first time since she came to work to Colorado Post.

He was a nice man. Had an authority, but he didn't treat his workers as a typical boss. They were colleagues, she would dare to say even friends. Well, definitely with Buck and Vin. He probably knew them longer than others, she assumed.

So far, Mary didn't see him ever yell at anybody. At first, he looked like a hard man to read, like a person to whom it wasn't easy to communicate. Yet, she didn't have such problems. This was already 15th text she wrote for Colorado Post and only two times he asked her to add something else and she appreciated it. It was good that she contacted two more people for those texts, they turned out better thanks to Chris' advices.

Chris sat down and turn on the engine. Automatically, the radio went on and he was surprised to hear Mary's voice "Excuse me, Mr. Larabee...can I ask you to please shut down the radio?"

Chris was a bit confused, but didn't object. "Certainly", he replied and turned it off. As he drove, he took few quick glances at young woman beside him wondering what's the matter.

"I'm sorry, I have a terrible headache", Mary whispered. She knew it was a lie. It was still way too hard to put on the music or TV...she was aware that it was longer than a year since Stephen was killed, but she couldn't help herself.

Chris nodded, not saying anything...but, somehow he didn't believe her that the headache was a reason. She seemed totally fine until he turned on the radio.

They drove in silence. As they waited for the green light to turn on, Chris stole another look at Mary...noticing she wore black again.

First few days, he didn't pay attention. But as it continued, he started to wonder what was going on...

In that moment, Mary's mobile phone rang "Hello?", her serious face softened a bit at the sound of voice on the other side "Hey, Billy. Is everything all right? Okay. Yes. Did you brush your teeth? Aha. Okay. Mmmm, that sounds like a lovely breakfast. No, honey, I'm so sorry, I can't come, I have to work. But, will you save me one pancake? Good. You be a good boy and listen to Mrs. Wells, okay, darling?"

Chris noticed how Mary's eyes shone with tears as she tried to swallow them. Still, he kept on driving, not saying a word.

"I love you, too. I'll call you later. Okay. Bye bye."

With a heavy sigh, Mary hung up her phone and just stared in front of her.

Even more now than later, Chris was certain that Mary Travis had some serious things going on in her life...

But, he didn't want to interrogate. There was a way of finding out the truth without upsetting her. He could clearly see that she was already upset and he didn't want to add to her anxiety.

**Next day**

Chris sat down and turned on his laptop. Pushing a button on a phone, he said "Inez, tell Casey to come to my office."

He took a sip of his coffee and looked through the window. In that moment, the doors opened "You wanted to see me, Chris?", Casey's voice was heard.

"Yes, Casey, come in", he smiled at young girl "Want some coffee?"

"No, thank you. Josiah mixed something he calls cappuccino", Casey made a grimace "I'm still recovering from it."

They both laughed.

"Listen, Casey, I have to ask you something and I want you to know that this will stay between you and me. Nobody will know that you told me."

"What is it, Chris?", asked Casey, falling serious.

"Casey, what do you know about Mary Travis?"

Casey fell silent. She did know probably more than anybody else in the newspapers, living next door to Mary's.

_'But, how did Chris suspected anything?'_

"What do you mean, Chris?_", she asked, trying to get on time._

"Do you know who is Billy?", asked Chris. As Casey remained silent, he suddenly felt bad about all this "Casey, I am sorry, I didn't want to put you in the awkward situation. But, I know that your Grandma lives in the same building with Mary...And I heard her talking over the phone yesterday and she mentioned your Grandma. She nearly started to cry after the conversation. Now, I know that it might not be my business, but if Mary is in some kind of a danger because of her job, it is my duty as her boss to protect her."

Casey thought hard about all this. She did promise that she won't tell anything about Mary's life to a living soul...but, if she trusted anybody in her life, that was Chris.

Therefore, she swallowed hard "It isn't because of her job. Chris...Billy is Mary's four – year – old son. Her husband Stephen was murdered year and half ago. It seems like Billy saw what happened. That's why Mary moved from Four Corners. She was scared for Billy's life as he is practically a witness. And the only one. My Grandma is watching over him while Mary is working because a boy is scared to be alone", she sent a pleading look to Chris "But, please, don't say that you heard it from me. I promised to Grandma I won't tell anyone."

Chris slowly leaned back in his chair, slightly nodding to Casey. He didn't expect this.

"They live here alone?", he silently asked.

"Yes. My Grandma knows Mary's Mother-in-law, so Evie asked my Grandmother to take care of Billy. I also do sometimes. We all try to help him to overcome his fears."

Chris remembered Mary's look last few days; she had black circles under her eyes. He remembered all too well how nights were a living hell for him after his family was killed. And Mary has a child to take care of...a child who probably saw the killer. Chris remembered that he couldn't sleep for months because of the nightmares...he couldn't even imagine how was it like for such a small boy like Billy to endure the same thing...

And he knew very well that a child won't be peaceful until killers of his Father are caught and brought to face of justice.

"Thank you, Casey", he silently said and nodded to a young girl as she left the office.

Few moments, Chris sat in silence and than picked up a phone. His face was serious and clouded with worry.

"Hello, Phillip? It's Chris Larabee. Fine, thanks, how are you? Listen, Phil, I need a favour..."


	5. Chapter 5

Traffic jam was the last thing Mary Travis needed today. The day has began badly already; Nettie Wells had to leave Colorado to visit sick cousin and Casey couldn't stay at home due to all the work that was waiting for her at Colorado Post. Mary didn't have anybody to look for her son and so little boy was sitting with her in the car while Mary tried to prepare both herself and her little sunshine for facing her colleagues.

Mary was dreading this. She knew she couldn't put Billy under the glass bell, but she didn't feel safe to take him outside, much less to take him to the newspapers where people ran non stop, phones rang, where life was a living chaos…

Lost in her thoughts, Mary didn't even notice police car following her ever since she left her apartment.

Police officer watched as Mary parked her car in front of Colorado Post and spoke into his phone "She's safely here, Chris."

Scanning through morning newspapers, Chris replied "Thanks, Phil", with that, he took a sip of his coffee and stood up from his chair.

Mary pulled the brakes on and looked at her son "Here we are, sweetheart. Are you ready?"

Billy didn't reply. He just stared at his hands resting on his lap. Mary unbuckled his seat-belt and leaned down. Kissing her little son on his pale cheek, she whispered "It's gonna be all right, I promise you. Come on, darling, lets go."

Chris watched through the window from his office how Mary left the car and opened the doors on the other side of her car.

He could tell by the look on her face that she was troubled…and that was when he saw a little boy holding Mary's hand and something in his heart crashed down.

So, that was Billy.

He watched as Mary knelt down and fix the little boy's jacket and hat so he wouldn't catch a cold. She was so gentle with him. It brought painful memories to Chris; memories of Sarah and Adam…

Swallowing hard, he moved away from the window and started to leave his office.

Mary took in a deep breath when the elevator opened and she felt Billy held her hand more tightly at the sight of her office.

"Hey", she gently said, looking down at her beloved son "It's okay. Come on."

Mary nervously entered the office, hoping that it won't be a problem that she brought Billy with her. She quickly scanned the room in search of Casey, a familiar face to her son. Her colleague noticed them immediately and smiled as she approached them.

"Hey, Billy", she smiled to a little boy.

"Hello, Miss Casey", Billy whispered.

"So, you're gonna spend some time with us today?", Casey's gentle smile was encouraging for the little boy, but he still hid behind Mary as he noticed all strange faces around.

"Oh my, who is this adorable little senor?", Inez's voice was heard and Mary felt another stone falling from her heart. She thankfully smiled to her new friend as Inez approached them with a plate full of biscuits and once she knelt down to be Billy's height, she whispered "Here, you can have some biscuit before breakfast. We won't tell your Ma", she added with a wink to a little boy.

Billy looked up at his Mum like asking for a permission to accept the offer. After she nodded, Billy shyly took one biscuit and whispered "Thank you."

"Billy, this is my friend Inez", Mary gently said "Inez, this is my son Billy."

"Nice to meet you, Billy", smiled Inez and Billy blinked before he hid himself again behind his Mum's legs.

Mary swallowed hard "He's a…He hasn't been around strangers in a long time. Guess he's a little shy", she silently finished her line.

"Nothing to be shy about. Or scared", all of a sudden Chris Larabee's voice was heard. Mary swallowed hard; this was what she was afraid of – what will her boss say to the fact she brought her child to her job?

She slowly looked up at approaching figure of Chris Larabee and was quiet surprised with what she saw.

Chris knelt down in front of little boy and said "Nothing to be afraid of, son. You're among friends here", with those words, he looked up at Mary and added "Same goes for you, Mary."

Mary was dumbfounded with what she just heard and looked at Casey for explanation, but all of a sudden, young girl became very busy with some papers on Josiah's desk.

"Mr. Larabee, I apologize, I should have asked, but Billy's Nanny had to leave and I couldn't leave him alone at home", Mary silently rambled, but Chris interrupted her "Nothing to apologize for, Mary."

Mary felt her eyes fill with tears as she watched Chris Larabee producing a little carved wooden horse and handed it over to Billy with words "What do you think? Does it look like a horse?"

She could feel her child moving behind her leg, curiosity getting better of him and Chris gently added "It's yours. Take it."

It was like a sun reached Mary's soul as she saw her little angel smiling for the first time in last year and half.

"You know what?", Casey's warm voice was heard again "You come with me, young man, I will introduce you to the others and than we can see what can we eat for breakfast", she took Billy's hand and boy accepted it.

Chris got up and watched Casey taking the boy. Him and Casey arranged the whole thing. Truth was that there was no sick cousin Nettie had to visit. Old lady was resting at home while Mary's new friends worked on showing her that she and her son weren't alone.

The tears became too hard and they rolled down Mary's cheeks. Inez quickly hugged her and held her tight as she cried.

Chris watched them in silence and Mary felt the gentle squeeze of his fingers on her shoulder before he went back to his office.

**Later that day**

Mary rushed into the Colorado Post, breathless. She couldn't postpone the interview she had for today and all the time she was wondering how Billy was. Inez and Casey assured her that they will watch over him while she was out, but Mary was still a nerve wreck. Beside Casey, Billy didn't know anybody of her colleagues.

She ran out from the elevator and Inez greeted her with a smile "He's fine. He is at Senor Larabee's office."

Trying to steady her fast breathing, Mary felt her heart skip a beat. She was expecting Casey will take care of Billy, perhaps Buck trying to make him laugh.

_But, Chris?_

Her palms got wet as she stopped in front of his office and gently knock on the doors.

"Come in", she heard his steady voice and slowly pressed the doorknob.

As the doors opened, Mary took in the sight in front of her; Chris and Billy were sitting on the floor, drawings all around them and Billy was just explaining to his new friend that he draw a cat, not a pig as Chris assumed. Mary's heart melted at that scene and even more on smile on her little son's face.

**Few hours later**

"Inez, could you watch Billy just for a minute?", Mary asked as she stopped once again in front of Chris' office.

"Of course", replied Inez.

"Thank you", with those words, Mary softly knocked on the doors in front of her and after she heard Chris' "Come in", she entered his office.

He looked up from Ezra's text he was editing "Is everything all right, Mary?", he asked.

Chris watched as she nodded, noticing her fingers nervously playing with a pen "I…", she mumbled. Looking up, she fell silent.

How could she possibly thank him for what he had done today?

"Mary?", by now, he was really concerned and Ezra's text was forgotten. Chris stood up from his chair and came closer to her.

She looked up "I don't know what to say... How to thank you. He didn't smile for so long, or relaxed…ever since", she fought her tears and Chris quickly interrupted her, to spare her the pain of telling the whole story.

"Ever since his Father died. I know", he silently said.

Mary's eyes widened in surprise "How do you know?"

"Well", he shrugged "I like to know more about people who are working for me. Few days ago when I drove you to that interview, you were talking on the phone and was upset and I thought you were in danger because of the job. And as an editor-in-chief, it is my duty to make sure my workers are safe. Therefore I called in an old favour from my friend who's a detective and so you and Billy will have police guard 24/7 until we catch Stephen's killer. Plus, Inez already arranged redecoration of one office here into a day care for the children so you don't have to worry about Billy being away from you anymore", his voice drifted off and he fell silent as Mary lost her battle with tears.

And as the sobs broke her down, she felt Chris Larabee arms pull her in a protective hug "It's all right, Mary. It's all right. Cry it all out. It's all right. You're safe now. You and Billy are safe now."


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

City lights shone brightly as Mary drove through the streets of Colorado. People were passing by in a hurry, laughing in the breath of the summer that swirled around the town.

She stopped at the red light and looked towards Billy. Her son was concentrated on carving a little piece of wood. Mary smiled; even though it was way past his bedtime, Billy showed no signs of tiredness. He was still melancholic and quiet, but something finally occupied his mind.

The green light shone and Mary hit the gas.

"What are you working on, honey?"

"A dog", was Billy's reply.

"Oh?"

"Yeah. Chris has pictures of the animals in his drawer and we agreed that each day I will choose one picture and than I will carve an animal that was on the paper", Billy wriggled in his seat and pulled out a paper from the pocket of his jacket. "See? I got a dog today. Chris will also carve it if he has time, but he promised he will help me colour this one."

Mary swallowed hard as she replied "That's good, darling."

As Billy went back to his carving, Mary tried hard to compose herself as she drove through the streets of Colorado.

Ever since that horrible night when she found Billy kneeling beside his Father's dead body, Mary was sick worried for her little son. She knew that the damage was done, that Billy saw something terrible happening to his Dad whom he adored. Police concluded that it was a robbery and that Stephen got killed in it, but Mary knew better. She knew that Stephen fought for the truth and published it. Mary couldn't count all the sleepless nights she spent reading old issues of The Clarion News, trying to find the text or texts because of which her husband was killed. But, soon she had to give up on it because Billy wasn't good at all. He needed her. She, Orrin and Evie tried so many things to help little boy, but than decided that it would be the best to take Billy away from the Four Corners and the danger of his father's killers still being around or coming back.

She turned on the left and sighed.

_Oh, Stephen...Help us... _

_**At The Colorado Post**_

Buck knocked on the doors and before getting a reply, he poked his head inside "Mind if I come in?"

Chris looked up shortly from his laptop and grumbled "What if I do mind?", but he couldn't help not to smirk a bit.

Buck grinned and looked down at Chris' laptop; the man could work 24/7 and never get tired, Buck sometimes asked himself did Chris ever eat or sleep "Something interesting?", he asked and once he got no reply from his best friend, Buck looked more closely to the screen. It was police report "Stephen Travis, editor – in – chief of The Clarion News was found dead in his home in Four Corners", Buck's eyes widened at what he just read "Travis...wait, is that...?"

Chris nodded "Mary's late husband."

Buck pulled the chair and sat down next to Chris "What happened?"

Chris suspiciously creased his eyebrows "They say it was a robbery, but I doubt it."

"How come?", Buck knew very well that Chris got sixth sense for stuff like this. Working in a journalism all these years enabled him to meet lots of people, but he also learned how to read them through all of their masks.

Chris shook his head "Somethings just isn't right. Police report says it was a robbery, but it just doesn't make any sense. Billy was with Stephen that night and if they really searched the place for valuable things, they would find the boy for sure."

Buck felt his stomach turning around at the mere thought of Billy witnessing his father's murder "You think Billy saw what happened?"

Chris' facial expression hardened "Unfortunately, yes. I contacted Phil to help me with this and found some details that confirmed my suspicions. The place was barely touched, Buck. It wasn't a robbery. It was a murder. Stephen Travis was killed."

Buck looked up at his friend "Was Mary there?", his voice was barely a whisper, fearing of what might have happened to their colleague back than.

"No, fortunately she wasn't", it was all that Chris said, but his thoughts were in a mess.

He watched Mary these days, knowing very well the hell she was in. He was there, he spent days and nights blaming himself for not being there for Sarah and Adam. He saw Mary doing the same he did; bury herself into the work, worrying over Billy while she got no help for herself at all. It was evident that she was at the edge. Circles under her eyes never disappeared, they were more darker with each new day and very often Chris would notice her eyes were red from crying and lack of sleep. Yet, she worked like a maniac, her texts filled the pages of the Colorado Post.

"She'll kill herself this way, you know", Buck commented, knowing very well what was going through Chris' head. Watching Mary was like a rerun of Chris' story. And he was aware that if somebody doesn't help her, and fast, she will fall down in the darkness.

"I know", Chris agreed.

"We can't let that happen", Buck added.

"I won't.** I won't** let that happen", Chris commented and looked back at the police report...not even noticing Buck's surprised look.

Buck was the only one of them who knew Chris years back, even before he met Sarah. They met as teenagers and Buck was amazed to see Sarah changing Chris so much. Back in their youth, Chris was wild and always ready for a party, but Sarah taught him blessings of having home and a family. He could still remember Adam calling him 'Uncle Buck' because they all saw him as Chris' brother instead of his friend...

Since that horrible morning when they found just ashes on the place where Larabee's home was, Buck didn't let Chris out of his sight. Even though Larabee pushed him away from himself, Buck didn't leave him. He followed him the whole time through that tunnel of sadness, anger, depression...It was Buck who finally managed to catch Ella once she almost escaped from Vin's hands. That sick woman killed two people whom Buck considered as a family. Buck was the one who let Chris know that he caught Ella and it was Buck who stopped Chris from strangling that crazy bitch with his own two hands! He didn't want Chris to end up in jail for a murder; instead he called a police and it was the end of Ella Gaines. Short time later they heard that she killed herself as she cut Chris' name in her hand and cut herself till death...

It was just after that that Chris started to heal. Slowly, but he definitely started to heal. He started to talk to people, he started to go out, he even started to wear something other than black...But, he showed no interest in women. Was it because he was scared or didn't trust them anymore, Buck couldn't tell. He remembered Julia, Maria...they all tried to win Chris' heart, but he stayed as cold as ice.

Until now...

_'Is it possible?', _Buck wondered as he watched his friend slowly going through the police report of Stephen Travis' death.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

"Hands up", said Mary with a smile and pulled Billy's left hand through the sleeve of hispyjama. "One down. Now the other one", she gently ruffled Billy's golden hair "There."

Her son laid down and Mary tucked him in. She softly kissed his cheek and heard his silent voice.

"Mommy?"

"What is it, darling?", she whispered back.

"You think that there's a ZOO in Colorado?"

Mary was little bit surprised. Billy didn't show interest for anything in last year and half. Where did this come from all of a sudden?

"I don't know, honey, but I'll check it. Why? Would you like to go?"

Little boy nodded "Yeah. Chris showed me photos of the animals I never saw before", whispered Billy "I'd like to see them."

Mary's eyes filled with tears "Which animals, can you remember?"

"An elephant", a child whispered, his voice already lulled into the world of dreams "And giraffes…Chris told me they live in Africa, but we can see them…", his voice trailed off as the sleep won over his senses and his eyes closed.

"…in the ZOO", Mary silently whispered. One tear rolled down her cheek on Billy's asleep little face as she kissed him once again "Good night, my angel…"

Mary tiptoed from Billy's room and went to the living room. As she sat down on the couch, she took the remote and absently flipped through the channels, not paying attention to TV at all.

Her tears now rolled freely down her cheeks. She saw change in Billy. He showed interest for the world around him and at first Mary thought that it was because of new town…

But, obviously, that wasn't a reason. They lived here for quite some time now, but it was just today that Billy picked up his eyes to look around.

She wiped her tears and inhaled a long, shaky breath as she stood to go to the kitchen.

She put the kettle on and watched as the water slowly boiled. The coffee will help her to think things through and to calm down.

Returning to the living room with a cup in her hand, Mary slowly took a sip of her coffee.

She remembered her talk with Billy, both in the car and now before his bedtime.

In just one afternoon, Chris managed to do something that neither she, Evie or Orrin couldn't for year and half – to put a smile back on Billy's little face. A short smile, but it was there. It was definitely there.

Turning the TV off, Mary stood up and with a cup in her hand, she went to the balcony.

The night washed over Colorado, the warmth of the summer accompanied with the light breeze swirled around her golden locks. Mary closed her eyes and inhaled deeply.

She blinked into the city lights mixed with the twinkling stars. She loved to watch stars on the sky.

Tomorrow she will ask Inez about the ZOO and take Billy there. Whatever held his attention, Mary will encourage it.

M7 M7 M7

After she settled Billy into a day care along with Nathan and Rain's daughter Hope, Mary stopped in front of the elevator, Nathan beside her.

Noticing Mary looking over her shoulder to check on Billy, Nathan slightly smiled at the blonde woman "Don't you worry, Hope will keep him busy. That child of mine can talk whole day and night."

Mary smiled back, feeling a bit relaxed "She's a lovely little girl. Do you have any more children?"

"Expecting. Rain is pregnant again. It's a boy", Nathan's smile grew wider.

"Congratulations, Nathan, that's wonderful", Mary smiled sincerely.

"Thank you. This day care is a great thing, this way Rain can get some proper rest."

"Oh, I know", Mary nodded, remembering how tired she was when she was carrying Billy.

A sad silent sigh escaped Mary's throat as she realized that Billy will never know of a joy of having a sibling…

"Good morning, Nathan. Mary", Chris' voice snapped her from her sad thoughts.

"Hey, Chris!", Nathan shook hands with his friend "No coffee this morning?", he grinned and Chris rolled his eyes.

"They ran out of the paper cups. And it's Inez' day off today. I guess I will have to deal with Josiah's horrible cappuccino."

"I can make you some coffee", Mary chimed in and as Chris' green eyes stopped on her face, she felt her insides tingle from his stare. _'Whoa! Where did this come from?'_, she smiled to hide her anxiety "I promise that it's better than Josiah's cappuccino."

"Well, it can't be worse", joked Chris and all three of them laughed "Thank you", he smiled at her.

"No problem. It's the least I can do considering what you did for Billy", Mary replied, swallowing.

"How is he today?", Chris' face fell serious.

Mary nodded "Good. He didn't wake at all last night like he usually does."

"He wakes up at night?", Chris creased his eyebrows in worry "Why?"

"Nightmares", Mary replied, her eyes filling with tears.

"You think he's been dreaming about the night his Father was killed", asked Chris, concern taking the better of him.

Nathan watched the interaction between two of them in amazement. He saw as Mary nodded at Chris' last question and how they both fell silent. He could see that Chris got lost in his thoughts and Nathan knew that his friend was thinking about the way to help little Billy.

The elevator rang and the doors opened. Mary was the first one who stepped out. Chris went into his office and Nathan sat down, contemplating what he just saw…

It was long time ago since Nathan saw Chris so much at ease with somebody.

He sat down at his chair, but just stared at the monitor, not turning his computer on.

It was than when Buck's face popped up in front of him, totally startling him. He didn't even see him until Buck spoke up "You saw it too, didn't you, Nathan?"

In the meantime, Mary went toward the coffee machine, Josiah hot on her heels with Ezra as back vocal that noted that Josiah doesn't stand a chance to learn how to make a decent coffee.

"For the love of God, Mr. Sanchez, do us all a favour and give up. Let Miss Travis to make us some good coffee before we all fall asleep again", Ezra tiredly begged.

"Shut up, Ezra", Josiah grumbled as he watched Mary working.

"This is hopeless", Ezra put his hands up in the air only to have them fall down his sides the very next moment.

Mary bit her tongue in order not to laugh once she saw Josiah doing it all wrong; instead of putting one little spoon of NES coffee and two little spoons of sugar, he put two little spoons of coffee and half of little spoon of sugar commenting that Vin doesn't like strong coffee. Vin's grimace spoke volumes and Mary looked up at Josiah "Josiah, we ran out of milk. Can you, please, go get it from the store?"

Ezra watched wide eyed how Josiah obeyed without a slightest objection. As Sanchez left the office, Ezra breathed out "God bless you, Miss Travis."

Mary laughed and gave a cup of coffee to Ezra and JD. The next one was Buck. As he took a sip of coffee, he smiled "This is the best coffee I ever tasted!", realizing what he just said, Buck froze "Don't tell to Inez that I said that, please!", he looked around himself like Mexican woman will burst behind the walls even-though it was her day off.

Mary laughed once again "I won't, don't worry."

From the doors of his office, Chris watched all this and softly smiled; Mary was relaxed among them. He loved the sound of her laughter and the way her crystal blue eyes sparkled whenever a smile would grace her face…

He stepped forward and she gave him a cup.

"Thank you", he said with a small smile.

"You're welcome. I'm the one who should say thanks, Mr. Larabee. What you did is a miracle."

Chris wanted to talk more to her, but was interrupted by Casey stopping to get her coffee. Once she gave Casey her cup, Mary went toward her desk and Chris drummed his fingers on the coffee machine before he went back to his office, slamming the doors behind him.

M7 M7 M7 M7

Mary saved her text and after she mailed it to Buck along with the photos, she looked at her watch and decided that it was time for lunch.

She stood up and took her purse. Billy was probably hungry by now. She hurried toward the elevator.

As it finally reached downstairs, Mary ran toward day care…

…and stopped dead on her tracks.

There was Chris sitting on the floor, toys scattered around. Hope was sitting on his right, leaning her curly head on his hand, while Billy sat on Chris' left side, snuggled against him to get a better view of the book Chris was reading from.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Mary stood behind the stupor, not wanting to disturb the moment kids shared with Chris…especially Billy…

Mary covered her lips with palm to stop the sobs. Ever since Stephen was murdered, she never saw Billy warming up to somebody like he did with Chris…

"Mummy!", her son's voice snapped her out of her trance and she knelt with her arms wide open to hug her little sunshine.

Billy hugged her strongly and lovingly, the way only a child can hug a Mother. Mary held him tight and kissed his soft blond hair.

Chris let go of Hope who went back to her dolls and he watched as Billy pulled away and asked with concern in his voice "Mummy, why're you crying?"

Chris' eyes met Mary's eyes and she quickly wiped her tears away, smiling at her son "It's nothing, don't worry. Got something in my eye. Now, what do you think that we go get some lunch?"

"Can Chris come with us? Please?", Billy pleaded, surprising Mary once again.

"Honey, I think that Mr. Larabee has some work to do…", but before Mary could finish her sentence, Chris' voice was heard "Nothing that can't wait", he winked at Billy and Mary smiled as she saw Billy's smile grow wider.

Chris came toward them and asked "What do you say we go to the ZOO after lunch, Billy?"

Billy's eyes widened and he looked up at Mary "Can we, Mum? Please?"

"I don't know…what about my job?", she looked at Chris with serious face and he shook his head.

"Mary, you sent your final text to Buck, along with the photos for it, didn't you?"

"Yes, I did."

"Well, than, as your boss, I am giving you the rest of the day off", talking Billy's hand in his, Chris stated with a smile "Now, come on, I'm starving."

Mary couldn't help not to smile and she took Billy's other hand and they went outside.

"We can walk if you don't mind. There's a great restaurant near by and the ZOO isn't far away", said Chris.

"Sounds good to me", Mary nodded.

"Me too", Billy's voice was unexpectedly heard and both grown ups laughed.

They reached the restaurant in just few minutes.

"What would you like to eat Billy?", asked Chris once they sat down.

"French fries!", little boy exclaimed.

"And what else?", Chris pressed on with a smile.

Mary warmed at the way Chris communicated with her son. So normal, so natural. Everybody else behave like they're walking on eggshells around the boy, making him missing his Dad even more. But, Chris had a way with Billy and Mary wondered does he have kids. He would certainly be an excellent Father.

"I need something else?", Billy crease his eyebrows and Mary decided to step in.

"Darling, how about some meat and tomatoes beside fries", as Billy nodded, Mary smiled "Come on, lets wash your hands."

The lunch went by in such a comfortable atmosphere. Mary was amazed at how Billy freely talked to Chris and how Chris patiently answered on all questions the child asked.

They walked for a while now and Billy's eyes widened at the sign of the ZOO.

"Billy, wait! You have to stay beside me and Mr. Larabee!", Mary warned him as he started to run toward the doors of the ZOO.

"Aaaawww, Ma!", Billy protested.

"Your Ma is right, Billy. It can be pretty dangerous at the ZOO. So, stay close", Chris said.

"Okay", Billy accepted.

As they reached the entrance, Chris went to buy the tickets, but Mary protested.

"Mr. Larabee, no. You didn't let me pay for the lunch, the least you can do is to let me buy the tickets for the Zoo."

"Certainly not, Mary. In front of little boy? How will he become a gentleman if I let you pay the bills?", Chris winked at her and Mary laughed "That was a low shot, Mr. Larabee."

"Please, call me Chris", he gave her the ticket.

Mary smiled "All right. Chris", she took Billy's hand "Come on, lets go."

M7 M7 M7

Billy stopped hot on his heels "Wow! Chris, which animal is this?"

"That's a camel. See the lump in her back? She keeps food inside. That way she can survive in the desert where there's no food for days."

"Keeps food…Like Mum does in a basement?", asked Billy, not taking his eyes of the camel.

Both Mary and Chris smiled "Yeah, something like that", replied Chris "Here", he reached for a branch full of green leaves on the tree beside them and gave it to Billy. In next moment, he picked up a little boy in his arms "Now you can feed her."

Billy's little hand took a good hold of a branch and he squealed both in fear and excitement as a camel pulled on the leaves.

M7 M7 M7

Last part of the ZOO was not noticed by Billy because he fell asleep in Chris' arms.

"Here, let me take him, he must be heavy to you already", said Mary, but Chris shook his head.

"Not at all, Mary. We would just wake him up. I'm fine. Come on, I'll walk you home. Or would you rather take a cab if you're tired?"

"No, I'm okay. It's not that far."

For few minutes they walked in silence until a silent snore from Billy caused bot of them to smile.

"He's totally out", commented Chris.

"Yeah, it was an exciting day for him", nodded Mary, fixing Billy's little jacket "You have a way with him, no doubt about that. I can't remember when was the last time he relaxed around someone."

"He's a good kid, Mary."

She gently smiled "You got any children, Chris?"

All of a sudden, a silence prevailed. Mary felt alarmed as she noticed the lines of Chris' face hardened.

"I had a son. He was killed three years ago with my wife", she heard him speak fast like he wanted to get it out as soon as possible so the pain would back away.

Mary gasped in shock "Oh, dear God, I am so sorry! I didn't know…"

But, Chris interrupted her, his voice icily cold "Lets just go."

M7 M7 M7

Mary opened the doors of her apartment and than of Billy's room. She tried to take a sleeping child from Chris' arms in front of the building, but a boy held tightly on his new friend, not waking up. She didn't have any other choice except inviting Chris into her home.

She mentally kicked herself for bringing up the painful memories. Now she stood at the doors of Billy's room and watched as Chris put her son to a sleep.

Chris gently unwrapped Billy's little hands from his neck and took his shoes off. Billy's blue pyjama with little white sheep on it was laying on the bed and Chris managed to put it on a child without waking the little boy up. Mary felt tears rolling down her cheeks.

She stepped back in the hallway as Chris tucked Billy in and gently caressed his soft blonde hair. Mary tried to stop her tears, but failed miserably.

As the doors of Billy's room closed, she looked at Chris and whispered "I am so sorry, I didn't mean to…"

His palm cupped her cheek and his fingers gently wiped her tears "I know", he silently said "I am sorry that I snapped at you."

She let out a shaky breath "I know how does it feel when somebody is prying about the tragedy in your life."

He gazed intently at her, his green eyes reaching the bottom of her soul "You weren't prying. You simply didn't know", he withdrew his hand from her face, feeling the warmth of her silk skin still resting inside of his palm "I should go", he quickly said.

"No", she quickly stopped him by catching his hand somewhere under his elbow. As their eyes met, she swallowed hard "Stay. I'll put on a coffee."

The blueness of her eyes woke something inside him and he could feel his heart skip a beat…Her eyes had a healing effect on every painful bit of his heart he thought had died with Sarah and Adam…

'_What's got into me?', _he thought.

He couldn't go…

He didn't want to go…

"Okay", he silently said "Okay, I'll stay."


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

For a moment, Mary got lost in the green orbs of Chris' eyes. Warmth  
radiated from the man in front of her and she felt her heart skip a  
beat...

She was certain that her cheeks got a nice shade of red, but hoped  
that in the mild light that washed over the hallway Chris couldn't see  
it. She didn't want him to notice something she was yet to discover  
and admit to herself...

"We best get inside the living room so we don't wake Billy up",  
whispered Mary and opened the doors behind her. She broke eye contact  
with Chris, trying to calm down "You have a seat, I'll go to make some  
coffee. Or would you prefer tea?"

Chris felt drawn to her. For some unknown reason, he felt like he knew  
her for his whole lifetime. There was something about her that made  
him feel like he was on a safe ground. He didn't feel that with any  
other woman ever since Ella Gaines destroyed his life.

"Coffee will be fine, thank you", he silently replied, entering her living room.

Mary nodded "I'll be right back", she softly smiled and it sent a  
feeling of warmth showering right through his battered heart "You make  
yourself comfortable", and with that she was gone.

Chris looked around himself; the place felt like home. Everything was  
in dark brown and white colour, the contrast he himself liked very  
much, the big white couch with soft pillows and dark brown table with  
small candles on it. TV was placed between closet and big book shelf.  
Chris took few steps further and looked upon the titles of the books.

The wind picked up the curtain and he noticed the balcony. Leaving  
back the book he took to see, he went toward the doors and slightly  
pushed curtain away, revealing the dark blue sky decorated with  
million twinkling stars.

He thought about the day behind him and a small smile lifted the corner of his lips. It was clearly that Billy had a time of his life and he could see very well that Mary relaxed as well. She was such a caring Mother, no matter how much the two of them talked, she never let Billy out of her sight and grabbed him several times whenever a child would come closer to a cage with dangerous animals occupying it.

Adam liked animals, too, especially horses. Chris remembered the times when he took his son to riding classes and how terrified was Sarah when Adam sat on the horse for the first time. Sharp pain tugged on his heart as he remembered Sarah's nervous hands holding Adam's jacket while Chris lead the Pony...and how Adam squealed of happiness...

The sound of cup gently placed on the table snapped him out from the sad memories. He turned around and saw Mary stepping toward him with two cups in her hands. Without a word, she handed one to him and he whispered "Thank you."

She just nodded and looked outside through the doors of the balcony. None of them said anything. It looked like both of them were lost in their own thoughts.

"What were their names?"

The sound of Mary's silent voice made Chris look at her. She looked back and he felt the calming feeling washing over his soul. She didn't push, she just stood there and looked at him, ready to listen. Able to understand.

He took a sip of coffee and Mary heard him say "Sarah. And Adam."

She held tight onto her cup "What happened?"

She watched as Chris left the doors of the balcony and went toward the couch. Over there he placed the cup on the table and sat down, placing his face in his palms.

Mary followed him and once she sat down, she waited. From her own experience, she knew that the worst thing to do now was to insist on talking. If he wasn't ready to talk about what happened, and she pushed, he will just close in. And Mary didn't want that. For his own sake and for Billy. She knew all too well what was it like to feel like you were walking through the endless tunnel of darkness. Exhausting. Terrifying. Lonely.

She placed her cup on the table, right beside his and simply waited.

For few minutes, they sat in silence. Than Chris looked at Mary. She held his gaze, encouraging him to go on without a word.

"They died in a fire", his voice was barely a whisper, but Mary heard it.

"Was it a set up?", she asked. Not noticing how close she is to him, barely a step away. Her palm unconsciously placed on his upper arm. He nodded. Mary swallowed hard "Did you find out who did it?"

"Yeah", he silently replied "My ex. She was a psycho, obsessed with me. Killed herself in a prison."

"Did you catch her?", Mary asked.

Chris took a breath in "Yes. With help of Buck and Vin. She tried to run away, but Buck caught her."

This was the first time somebody asked normal questions, not just saying 'sorry for your loss'. Chris was well aware of that. Mary knew. She understood what it feels like.

"How old was Adam?"

"Four", until now, Chris fought well with holding his emotions in. But, Adam's face showed up in front of him now. He swallowed hard "He was just a child, Mary..."

She could hear the tears in his voice before they rolled down his cheeks and without thinking much, she pulled him in a hug. Ready that he will push her away. Ready to be sent off. Still, she held him tight. Giving him a chance to let it all out.

Surprisingly, she felt him clutching to her comfort. The tears in her throat became too heavy and as he hid his face in her golden locks, she let them roll down freely and hugged him more tight.

"Let it all out", she whispered "You need it, Chris."

She was right. She was so right.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

She waited. She knew. This was the first time he let it all out.

Mary knew how people could be nosy. Thinking that they're helping you, but in the end making you feel only worse. It wasn't until Chris told her that he will catch Stephen's killer that she let it all out. She always tried to hold her tears back because of Billy and her parents – in – law. Memories were too painful, she didn't need them to watch her shed tears for her deceased husband. That's why she used to cry herself to sleep, when nobody would hear or see.

Chris was the first person who saw her crying. He caught her off her guard. She didn't expect him to show up in her life.

She swallowed hard, trying to wipe her tears. As Chris slowly pulled away from her, their eyes met.

"I'm sorry", he whispered.

Mary shook her head "Nothing to apologize for", she tried to smile.

He saw the tears on her cheeks. Knew that her own wounds weren't healed. Yet, she reached her warmth out to him to help him.

For a moment, none of them spoke a word. Mary felt her blood running up to her cheeks and she quickly turned her face away and picked up her cup from the table.

Chris noticed and silently cursed at himself for making her uncomfortable. Therefore, he also took his cup and drank a bit of coffee.

Mary slowly regained her composure and looked back at him. This man stirred feelings inside her, she was even more aware of it as he was sitting so close to her now, in her own apartment.

"It must have been awful to learn that someone you used to love killed two most important people in your life", she silently said.

Chris nodded "She was insane. I don't know how come I never saw it."

Mary shrugged "Love is blind, you know."

"Perhaps I should have gone to see an ophthalmologist", grumbled Chris and was surprised by the silence that followed. He looked at Mary and saw her trying hard not to laugh. It was then when he realized what did he just say and like on a cue, they both started to laugh out loud. Mary nearly spilled her coffee as she tried to calm down from the laughter, but it only made it worse; her stomach ached from the giggles.

Chris wiped his forehead as he leaned into the couch, his laughter not calming down at all. He felt relaxed and after such a long time he enjoyed the company of a woman.

"Oh, my God", Mary breathed out "I don't remember when was the last time I laughed so much", she wiped her tears.

"Me neither", Chris chuckled and took a final sip of his coffee. He looked at the empty cup, knowing that this was it. It would be rude to stay a minute longer, plus it was late. Mary needed her rest. "I should go", he said, getting up.

Mary's face fell and she quickly rose from the couch"So soon?", the words were out before she even realized what did she say and this time a nice shade of red coloured her cheeks. _Oh, my God! How could I be so stupid?', _her thoughts were in a pure panic.

The next thing she felt was Chris' palm somewhere between her cheek and neck and his lips softly touched her forehead. A silent sigh escaped Mary's lips and she closed her eyes.

His lips lingered on the soft skin of her forehead. It took all the strength in the world to pull away from her. Her eyes opened and she looked at him. Chris swallowed hard.

'_No. It is too soon', _he thought.

"Thank you, Mary", he whispered and with that, he was gone.

Mary stood frozen on her feet, breathing heavily.

She was lost. Completely. She knew it now for sure.

She lost her heart to Chris Larabee.

**M7M7M7M7M7M7M7**

Mary smiled as she left the elevator. She couldn't remember when was the last time she slept so tight and well like last night. Billy also slept throughout whole night, without making a sound. This morning two of them had an early breakfast and Mary drank her morning coffee with a smile on her face as she listened to Billy's talk about the ZOO and the animals.

She put him in a day care and went to the elevator. Strangely, she felt at peace.

As she left the elevator, she noticed that everybody in the office looked at her. Mary creased her eyebrows as she greeted Inez and the Mexican just opened her mouth, but didn't let the word out.

"What?", she asked.

,

Ezra, of course, was the first one to comment "I hope you don't mind me saying this, Miss Travis, but you look absolutely radiant in that red dress."

It was just than that Mary realized that after year and half this was the first time she wore some other colour than black.

_'Oh, my God!"_, she swallowed hard Nervously smiling, she whispered "Thank you, Ezra", and quickly went toward her desk.

She turned on her computer and noticed a hand placing a cup on her desk. She looked up and Inez hugged her around her shoulders and whispered so that only Mary could hear her "So good to see you feeling better, Mary."

Inez' big brown eyes spoke volumes. She could tell that something changed in Mary, but she didn't press her to talk.

"Thank you", Mary smiled sincerely.

Inez nodded "I have to go. So much to do. With this party and all", she rolled her eyes.

"Party? What party?", Mary creased her eyebrows.

"Newspapers' anniversary. We throw it every year. And every year senor Buck drives me nuts because of my outfit for the party."

Just like on a cue, Buck showed up from nowhere "Inez, I can not wait to see what will you wear this year to impress me."

"See, Mary, what did I tell you?", Inez shot daggers at Buck with her eyes.

"Ahh, you talked to Miss Travis about me? I am flattered. That gives me hope, my beauty, thank you", Buck continued, his palm covering his heart.

"Dios mio. Give me strength", Inez huffed, walking away, Buck hot on her heels and Mary couldn't help but chuckle as she watched them go away.

She noticed that Chris' office was in the dark and heard Vin and Josiah discussing the editorial today as Chris went to work on some story.

Her eyes fell down and she took a sip of her coffee.

It wasn't same here without him...


End file.
